The Australian Netball Players’ Association issued Netball Australia delegates a strongly-worded letter this week, saying that it was a “non-negotiable position” that Harby-Williams be re-elected.

But their worst fears were realised when Harby-Williams was overlooked at the annual general meeting today.

The ANPA said in a statement that it had decided against cancelling this weekend’s games, but would stage a protest at games to shine a light on the issue of board independence.

Kathryn Harby-Williams missed out on position on the Netball Australia board at its annual general meetingSource:News Limited

The players said potential further action would be subject to discussions to be held over the “coming days, weeks and months”.

“The Australian Netball Players Association is disappointed that delegates today decided not to reappoint Kathryn Harby-Williams to the board of Netball Australia,’’ the statement read.

“The players have today met and resolved that some form of protest will occur at this weekend’s Suncorp Super Netball matches.

“The players have resolved that the protest will not include cancelling this week’s matches in the interest of fans, corporate partners and broadcast obligations. Instead the protest will seek to continue to shine a light on the very real issue of independence and governance on the board.

“Additionally, the players have chosen not to cancel this week’s matches after receiving both public and private assurances that none of the benefits or conditions they receive are under threat. We understand it remains the intention of Netball Australia for all players to be professional within the next five years.”

The players added they would keep a watchful eye over the deliberations of the board in the immediate future to ensure it made decisions that benefited the sport “as a whole and not of some”.

Netball Australia board of directors chair Paolina Hunt said the board wanted to now move forward.

“We are confident that our Board of Directors has a dynamic combination of experience,’’ Hunt said.

“Now that the vote has been determined, we are ready to move forward collectively and focus on creating the best outcomes for our sport.

“Netball Australia and its Member Organisations share a vision and commitment to grow the game, and the appointment of Directors puts us in a strong position to address our key priorities.

“We are committed to seeing our athletes be the first fully professional female athletes, while supporting them with the best conditions.”